Best of 2013: The 48 Edition - Winners

After hours and days of deep contemplation, I hereby would like to announce my choice of winners for 2013. These weren't easy choices, and bound to stir up some discussion, but



Best Covers Artwork 2013
AKB48 studio recordings collection (AKB48) - all

This was a close one. There were a few compelling choices but in the end, it was this collection of perspectives that took the cake. Each cover a creative take on the stage title, they were sometimes bold, sometimes inspiring, some drawing from a wide spectrum of styles - from manga to watercolir and all sorts of vector and 3D CG in between -, even witty and (in the case of B 2nd, perverse) but altogether slick, works of art. I am not using that last word lightly - any of these could find a suitable place in your home (yes, probably even B 2nd if you're daring enough), framed and hung on a wall. They're not just merely a celebration of the roots of AKB48, they're a dynamic and deep reflection of what made them great.

Honourable Mention: Suzukake no Ki no Michi de "Kimi no Hohoemi wo Yume ni Miru" to Itte Shimattara Bokutachi no Kankei wa Dou Kawatte Shimau no ka, Bokunari ni Nan-nichi ka Kangaeta Ue de no Yaya Kihazukashii Ketsuron no You na Mono

Special Award 2013
The international fan groups

For special services and outstanding contribution to the AKB48 group, community and Japanese entertainment/idol industry at large.
This year was not only the year that a certain Rino Sashihara rose from the ashes of 2012 and helped drive the second coming of Heavy Rotation to the top, it was the year of the overseas wota. The year that they were immortalised online, complete with the official seal of AKB48 approval. Now I'll be honest. I've made some fairly harsh remarks about the overseas fandom on this blog before, and I still hold certain aspects to be true. And it's most certainly not the first media appearance of overseas fans. But more significantly, I think this year marks a turning point, where fans from across the globe can get together and string something up, free of fuss or drama, to the point where you can get recognised for it by the powers-that-be and the idols-that-are. Exhibit A: Koisuru Fortune Cookie. Exhibit B: the Haruka Kodama birthday project. And not only those, but even garnering guest appearances on important events like the election.

However, let's not get ahead of ourselves - recognition isn't the end goal. Nor is it the purpose. But it's the demonstration that if there is one common purpose and sound organisation, it can work. And it shows.

Honourable Mention: 48 Group theater general managers


Best Soloist/Subunit Song 2013
NO NAME - Kono Namida wo Kimi ni Sasagu

A NO NAME back-to-back two years in a row? Absolutely. A slightly more contemplative work than its predecessor, this shone the brightest amongst all the few stars in the soloist/subunit world. Whilst not as brimming with energy, the emotional nuances are still present. The hallmarks that made Kibou no Tsuite great are given a different take: the heart-wrenching emotional high of the bridge, the key change. Yet it is ultimately the sum of parts that is once again compelling. 

Honourable Mention: Mayu Watanabe - Rappa Renshuuchuu


Best Coupling Music Video 2013
AKB48 - Party is over

I really liked Ikiru Koto's tone, colour, vivid imagery and direction. But I'm giving this one to Party is over: there's nothing like a classy, well-produced and slightly abstract music video to shake things up. Brilliant cinematography, top notch production values and gorgeous to look at with its smooth fluidity. It also has the most fitting of soundscapes - a down beat, chilled, light R&B number that isn't too far off the likes of old-school Mai Kuraki or Hikaru Utada. 

Honourable Mention: AKB48 (Team A) - Ikiru Koto

Best Coupling Song 2013
SKE48 - Escape

Originally, this was going to be a difficult decision. There just aren't that many genuinely hot coupling songs around this year - there were a few good ones, but nothing that makes your head turn around, or make you sit up and take notice.

That was until Suzukake released. And then it became a one-horse race.

If I had to name Yoshimasa Inoue's magnum opus, this may well be it. True to his form, it is as if UZA went to finishing school. Still fast(er), still highly uplifting and aggressive but in a manner that is much more refined and less prone to ear aches. Gone is the slightly grungy, gritty feel, and the awkward autotune vocals, now replaced with smoother sounding synths and, for lack of a better word, awesome piano riffs. There just isn't a moment where you can truly relax in peace - it goes from strength to strength, from a calm of dread to a burst of controlled wrath. If SKE48 was a coin, this is the tails to the Aishiteraburu!!! or Sansei Kawaii! head. Many were right - this should have been an A-side, easily. It would probably sell in droves, too. Top it off with a Mizuho center and the notorious revolving shots of Rion Azuma getting people outta' the way and smashing the electric keyboard like a boss and this is a no-brainer. Best SKE48 song of the year? I wholeheartedly agree.

In fact, if it were not for the arbitrariness of award category rules, and were it not for the strength of that other elephant in the room, it may have had a real shot of taking out another award. You know, the "Best Song of 2013" one.

Honourable Mention: AKB48 (Team A) - Ikiru Koto

Breakthrough Member of 2013
Kaori Matsumura (SKE48)

She's not the prettiest member. Not by a long shot anyway. But love her or hate her, you could not ignore her presence. Everywhere you went in SKE48, Kaotan popped up somewhere. More often than not with her video camera in hand. She has literally built up her image from ground zero with nothing more than Google+, a video camera and a niche but vocal following. Known for her infamous blunt, and sometimes inappropriate, statements on various topics - especially on management - she exists to serve one purpose in SKE48: to promote and advocate for the Kenkyuusei. With great results: the awareness of Kenkyuusei is steadily growing amongst management and the wider fandom (look at where most of the 5th gen are now, and it's only a matter of time before the 6th gen make solid gains). But it wasn't really until this year that her breakthrough moment came: an honorary status and the first SKE48 member to have a solo debut release, whilst still being a Kenkyuusei. Truly an advocate for the group and an inspired self-marketing story in one. If Nishishi is the cornerstone, and Jurina/Rena the image mascots, then Kaotan is the big mother cog that helps to keep the small, but key, ones chugging along.

Honourable Mention: Meru Tashima (HKT48)


Best Music Video 2013
AKB48 - So long

At a record (and bladder) breaking 60+ mins for the full version, you might as well call it a mini-film. But the beauty of this music video lies in its disfigured beauty: the almost intentional indie look, the cut-out cookie cutter transitions and CGI, set against the backdrop of the quaint Fukushima countryside and the tragedy of the 2011 nuclear disaster. Snippets of life, stories of history transcending time and space, and hopes of a rebuilding future as told from the perspective of students and elderly alike. Yet what is the role of AKB48 in this piece? Are they merely figures used to drive the story-cum-documentary forward, or the pivot between the fiction of the film and non-fiction of the entire context of post-2011 Fukushima? Such discussion is beyond the scope of an article like this, but there's much to think about. It's not the prettiest film by any means of imagination, but the intention of the visuals do drive home a key point: the real beauty is in hope in the midst of tragedies past.

Honourable Mention: AKB48 - Koisuru Fortune Cookie


Best Song 2013
AKB48 - Koisuru Fortune Cookie

At last count, we are up to 53 officially certified versions of this music video on YouTube, submitted from across the globe, and that's not even counting the hundreds of unofficial ones floating around on the internet. It's been a while since we had a catchy hit like Heavy Rotation, and I'm glad to say its spiritual successor has finally arrived. Whereas Heavy Rotation relied on its call-and-answer in the now-famous chorus, the key to Fortune Cookie's success is in its easily accessible dance routine. Not just members, management and fans joining in, but also government officials, Western pop music celebrities, corporate staff from a variety of industries and levels, and even those in professions and academia. The song enables its success: a mid-tempo disco-inspired groove tune hearkening back to the 70s-80s, with a fairly simple lyrical structure and spawning a grand total of three versions each in a different language.  There really was no other A-side that came close this year. Indeed, Fortune Cookie redefined AKB48 during 2013. 

Honourable Mention: SKE48 - Sansei Kawaii!


Member of 2013
Minami Minegshi (AKB48)

This will no doubt be a controversial choice. How is it that a scandal-ridden member, front and center of the entire YouTube head-shaving fiasco that has made international headlines for all the wrong reasons, can be chosen as the so-called "Member of 2013"? Surely there are members with a much cleaner and more favourable record to pick from, you ask. And you may have a justifiable point. We may argue day and night about Miichan's decision back then, and its effect on the group going forward - indeed, I've written an entire essay on this very scandal earlier in 2013.

But more than 10 months later, it's her comeback since then that merits a real story to tell. Her demotion to Kenkyuusei may have been seen by many (and rightly so) as a punishment back when the scandal erupted. However, it's also had the effect on giving her, to use a much-quoted quote, a new lease on life as an AKB48 member. It's given the opportunity, not just to reflect on her actions, but also to enable her to lead. The Kenkyuusei of back then were made up of a motley crew of 12th-14th gen members. Fast forward to today, and Miichan is captain of the newly formed (and revived from the dead) Team 4. Shrugging off her past days and becoming more of a mentor to the fast-growing potential future stars in the group (especially the so-called "Three Musketeers").

And it's not like she hasn't done anything to rebuild her own image either. She's still neck-and-neck with her sparring partner, Sasshi, in the world of variety TV. Her fall in the election wasn't as bad as some might have predicted - indeed, she's still in many an AKB48 senbatsu lineup. And let's not forget her shaved head has given a chance for her to sport a new look - aka. the AKB48 take on the Lunch Pack queen.

Ultimately, 2013 may not be the best of years for dear old Miichan. But I'd also argue that 2013 has been more meaningful for her own growth as a professional idol and entertainer, both in and outside of AKB48, and even also for the entire future of the group as a whole.

Honourable Mention: Rino Sashihara (HKT48)